To the four of you left reading -- Jason and I have been trying to get our bearings as Scientopia has been bouncing amidst servers, and will resume regular posts soon. In the meantime, I would highly recommend checking out Fifty-Cent translated into the Queen's English. Really raises some interesting questions about what 'translation' means, eh? (Ha-ha, kidding!) (Sort of)

I could also use some help picking a hotel room for a conference this weekend... As a young traveler, I've been investigating the 'budget' options. TripAdviser has informed me that I can choose among the following fine establishments. Please advise --

I can't get over how dire the reviews are --! "Don't do this" "MY MISTAKE" "Stay away!" --It's like they survived Hostel II and have clawed their way back to civilization just so they can write ominous testimonials on TripAdvisor.

My model of online reviews is that only disgruntled customers and competitors are motivated enough to post reviews. Them, and, of course, the businesses themselves; I'm positive that they put a lot of energy into faking positive reviews. I have a link someplace to damning evidence of this.

Based on the wide variance, I'd be suspicious of those reviews. Maybe try some other sites, like Orbitz and get other opinions. A tip about bedbugs; keep your luggage on the luggage stand or on a table or chair (not on the bed or the carpet).

Speaking of Fitty and the queen's English, I had this insight when reading Robert Alter's "Pen of Steel" a few weeks ago. Alter traces how the Jacobean English of the KJV translation of the Bible (as opposed to all other versions) left traces on some of the most famous American literature. It struck me that the only place left in American culture where the KJV influence is felt is in rap music. Although by no means the primary offender, Fitty uses semi-archaic "Biblicalist" language regularly, for example, "They say you can never repay the price for taking a man's life. I'm in debt with Christ, I done did that twice". Another example would be Juelz Santana's "Second Coming" (used in the famous Nike commercial), which inverts the Yeats poem by the same name, which none of the critics seemed to notice.